The key to success in yoga is the ability to relax in the yoga poses, so that one's muscles are both strengthened and lengthened, even as one relaxes, breathes deeply, and meditates. Sometimes a pose is held for a considerable length of time, up to ten, or even thirty, minutes. What makes this challenging is the difficulty of the various poses, many of which require the student to exert pressure on the floor (though several different body parts) in both downward and outward directions. Slipping, which can result in failure to properly perform the posture, is a concern, and the control that one must exert to avoid slipping can interfere with one's ability to relax while holding the pose. This can, of course, be a particular problem for beginners.
One product that has been designed to address this problem is referred to as a “yoga mat;” a thin flexible pad, usually around two-and-a-half by six feet, with a rubbery, non-slip surface both on the top and the bottom. The student does the poses on top of the mat, which helps to keep him or her from slipping and also provides some padding for the poses in which the student is sitting or lying on the floor. Yoga practitioners now commonly use this type of mat.
Yoga has, in recent years, expanded dramatically in popularity. Yoga studios have cropped up seemingly everywhere and there are dozens of instructional videos on the market. Displays of these videos, along with yoga props (including, of course, the yoga mat) can be found not only in video and exercise stores but also in health food stores, up-scale supermarkets, department stores, and bookstores.
In the applicants' experience, there are some drawbacks to yoga mats. For example, if a yoga practitioner is traveling, and wants to practice yoga, the practitioner may find it necessary to carry the mat. Moreover, if a practitioner wants to practice in a room that is already carpeted, the practitioner may not feel the need or desire to use a mat. Still further, the aesthetic setting for the practitioner may be important, and the practitioner may prefer a setting that does not use a mat. For example, a yoga practitioner may find it important to practice yoga in a setting that includes beautiful woven wool rugs and may prefer to perform the yoga postures directly on those rugs, but the use of mats may detract from the aesthetics of the setting. In such circumstances, if a mat is not used, slippage can still be an issue for the practitioner.